Abstract

ALVARENGA, Patrícia; OLIVEIRA, João Marcos de  and  LINS, Taiane. The impact of maternal depression on preschoolers internalizing behavior problems. Aletheia [online]. 2012, n.38-39, pp. 94-108. ISSN 1413-0394.

This study compared the frequency of complaints of anxiety, depression, withdrawal, emotional reactivity, and somatic symptoms in children whose mothers showed depression indicators, with the frequency of such complaints in children whose mothers presented no depression indicators, assessed by the scale of internalizing problems of CBCL-1½-5. Twenty-five mothers of thirty-six-month-old boys divided into two groups took part in the study, one group with depression indicators and another without depression indicators. Mothers responded individually to the BDI and CBCL-1½ -5. Significant differences were found between the groups on total internalizing problems and more specifically on emotional reactivity syndrome, with both scores higher in children whose mothers presented depression indicators. The relevance of some dimensions of infant temperament and mechanisms of genetic transmission for understanding the relationship between maternal depression and internalizing problems on preschoolers is discussed.

Keywords : Maternal depression; Internalizing problems; Childhood.

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